HISTORIC HOME TOUR: William Cooke House

Submitted by Makenzi Henderson on Mon, 04/06/2015 - 7:51pm.READ MORE:

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) -- The Azalea Festival home tour features a house that celebrates captains and seafaring.

The Smiths said they have owned the Greek-revival cottage at 321 S. 4th Street in Wilmington for 25 years. According to the Azalea Festival website, William Cooke, the captain of the original cutter Diligence, built it in 1844. It has the original fireplaces, wood floors and detached kitchen.Suzanne Smith said the detached kitchen is one of the only ones in southeastern North Carolina.

The Smiths restored the kitchen, shored up the foundation and replaced the old wiring. They said it's a lot of work, but worth it.

"Oh, it's completely worth it. I feel really happy. The only room we haven't done now is what I call the real kitchen, the one I cook in. But, we're out of energy right now," Suzanne Smith said while chuckling.

She went on to say that she and her husband, Herman, have added some nautical touches, like the bust of a Mermaid, to the home to honor the Captain Cooke.

The Historic Home Tour is Saturday, April 11 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, April 12 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets are Tickets $25 in advance, and $30 on the day of the event. The ribbon cutting will be at the MacRae-Willard House at 520 Orange Street on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. Click here for more information.

According to the Azalea Festival's website, the North Carolina Azalea Festival Home Tour is an annual event held by the Historic Wilmington Foundation. Proceeds from the Home Tour will advance the Historic Wilmington Foundations efforts to protect and preserve the irreplaceable historic resources of Wilmington and the Lower Cape Fear region. Since 1966, the foundation has successfully saved more than 200 historic properties from demolition.

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HISTORIC HOME TOUR: William Cooke House